Education, From The Capitol To The Classroom

Stories about students: How does education policy affect the way students learn and grow? Can schools meet their needs as they balance ramped-up testing with personal changes and busy schedules? And are students who need help getting it?

Stories about educators: How are those responsible for implementing education policy in schools − from classroom teachers, to district administrators, to school board members − affected by changes at the top? And how well do they meet their challenge of reaching students with varying abilities and needs?

Stories about school assessment: With an increased push for 'accountability' in schools, what can test scores tell us about teacher effectiveness and student learning − and what can't they tell us? What does the data say about how schools at all levels are performing?

Stories about government influence: Who are the people and groups most instrumental in crafting education policy? What are their priorities and agendas? And how do they work together when they disagree?

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Stories about money: How do local, state, and federal governments pay to support the education policies they craft? How do direct costs of going to school − from textbooks to tuition − hit a parent or student's bottom line? And how do changing budgets and funding formulas affect learning and teaching?

Indiana Board of Education Approves Take Over Plan

August 29, 2011 | 4:06 PM

The Indiana Board of Education held its final vote earlier today on the take over five Hoosier schools, four of them from Indianapolis. Our colleague Brandon Smith with Indiana Public Broadcasting filed this report.

The board unanimously approved each of the Department of Education’s recommendations for state action on the schools in their sixth year of academic probation. Indianapolis Public Schools Superintendent Eugene White, who attended the meeting, says some of the information about IPS the board discussed is blatantly untrue:

“And I really resent the fact that people can sit there and pretend that we’ve done nothing to make an effort. We’ve made tremendous efforts and respectively, I want those particular efforts recognized.”

State superintendent Tony Bennett says the time for such complaints has long been over:

“Well, very bluntly, Dr. White’s had two years to talk about fair shakes and share transparent information. So to come to the board today and say, ‘I’m not getting a fair shake,’ is disingenuous.”

White announced last week IPS will file suit against the state in an attempt to block the takeovers.